Pawar urges states to promote bamboo cultivation

New Delhi, Dec 13 (UNI) Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar today called upon the state governments to promote bamboo development under the National Bamboo Mission.

Addressing a meeting of Consultative Committee attached his Ministry, Mr Pawar said ''it will be necessary for states to remove restrictions coming in the way of development of bamboo including amendment to the State Transit Rules under Indian Forest Act, 1927 to facilitate cultivation, felling and transport of bamboo and bamboo-based products.'' A dialogue in this regard will be held with the states and an appropriate mechanism evolved for facilitating such activiies, he added.

The National Bamboo Mission, the Minister said was to promote the growth of bamboo sector in the country through area based regionally differentiated strategies. The area under bamboo would be increased by planting appropriate varieties of bamboo to enhance production and productivity and to promote marketing of bamboo and handicrafts made out of it for generating employment opportunities for skilled and unskilled persons especially of unemployed youth.

It is estimated that 8.96 million hectares of forest area in the country occupies bamboo amounting to 12.8 per cent of forest cover.

Two third of the growing stock of bamboo in the country is in the north eastern region.

The demand for bamboo has increased within the country and abroad as raw material for furniture making, as panel boards substituting wood, as agricultural implements, house/construction related uses and as a vegetable, the Minister said and pointed out that China, the major producer of bambo; exports bamboo products worth more than 550 million dollars per annum.

The Central Government has accorded approval for the implementation of the National Bamboo Mission Scheme for which a financial outlay of Rs 56.23 crore has been approved for a period of 5 years beginning 2006-07, Mr Pawar said.

Other members who also attended the meeting suggested that state governmetns should make bamboo cultivation economically viable for the common man.

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